At a certain point in the deep and complex narrative of Red Dead Redemption 2, Arthur Morgan needs to deal with someone who is saying where he is and letting the authorities know of his location. The character can be spared or killed, but with this Red Dead Redemption 2 player choosing the second, crueler option, karma comes back to bite them almost instantly.
The video was posted to the Red Dead Redemption 2 subreddit by user Technical_13, and with the clip including RDR 2’s misbehaving horses, one might expect something to occur involving the companions. User Xphil6aileyX echoes this sentiment, stating that they were expecting something “like the horse kicking you off.” Despite moving in an odd way, though, the horses behave and move out of the player’s way.
The player’s demise comes from their own mistake, as their act of cruelty instantly comes back to bite them. While Dutch may have shown he cares for Arthur, this player’s Arthur completely lacks a caring personality. As he steps on the hands of the NPC hanging on for their life, effectively killing them and missing out on a special pen that improves Arthur’s journal writing, Technical_13 turns to continue on about their day of crime. Unfortunately, this is where their slip-up occurs.
Technical_13 moves a bit too closely to the ledge, with Arthur losing his footing and tumbling down after his victim. The Red Dead Redemption 2 protagonist lets out an awful but hilarious scream, and he dies instantly as he hits the floor. With this player’s version of Arthur dead, no more people can be killed, and no more mean jokes can be made about John Marston — at least for 10 seconds or so until the player respawns. It is hard not to laugh at the moment, as it is exactly what the player deserves for their actions at the time.
Instant karma from RDR2
This is far from the only moment of karma in Red Dead, as one Red Dead Online player was punished severely last month for an unnecessary kill in the game. Murdering an innocent player in a swampy area with a bow, the player’s body tumbles into the green water below — only to reappear seconds later and explode in the aggressor’s face. That moment is just as funny as Arthur’s death at the hands of karma, and both are good examples of how anything can happen in Rockstar’s sprawling Western world.
While this player may be going out of their way to stop Arthur Morgan’s impressive character development, most players will see him as the tragic anti-hero that he is by the game’s conclusion. While Arthur is loved by many, though, it is still funny to laugh every once and awhile when he stumbles off a ledge — especially when karma is involved.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.